Monday, August 31, 2015

Do you wait for
school to begin so that you have more writing time? I know a lot of moms who
can barely hang on until the summer is over and the new school year starts in
order to have more time at the computer.

It goes something
like exchanging “I’m bored” for an exotic land where romance finds the plain
librarian. “What can we do?” for a mother’s devotional for keeping one’s sanity
in a houseful of children. A story in intrigue and suspense where a stronger
than Bond woman saves humanity in the nick of time. Then there’s chasing down
backpacks and homework, “I don’t KNOW where I left it!” only to be left with a
dashing cowboy who will help you wrangle the farm’s mortgage from the banker’s
greedy hands. And sweet, stolen kisses. Almost always kisses.

See? No telling
where your day will take you once the kiddles are out the door. And while you
love them, you can’t wait to sink into the computer chair and start dreaming.
Start putting your personal voice to the words.

Does the
housework always get done? Sadly, no. But you do enough laundry to get them through
the weekend, supper is generally ready on time(if not, there’s always chicken
nuggets), and you save enough energy for soccer and gym classes.

And while you
aren’t sure where that cowboy is going to ride in from, or how you’ll balance
on a huge drone in order to drop into enemy fire, you know that tomorrow, it
will start all over again. Your fingers will fly on the keyboard, and you’ll be
able to escape for a few minutes or a few hours to a place where no apple cores
and orange peels hide under the couch cushions. And no dust bunnies will stop
you from saving mankind!

Wednesday, August 26, 2015

I’ve published a number of books,
but there probably aren’t many of you who have read them. That’s because I’m
writing in obedience, and the market God has chosen for me is not large. I’m
okay with that.

I became convinced God wanted me to reach out to the
male nonbeliever, the person who is reluctant to discuss faith issues, and to
plant the little seed that will open the door for someone else to go further.
There are planters, then there are the farmers who cultivate and nourish the
seed as it grows, and finally there are harvesters who get the wonderful
pleasure of helping Jesus reap the crop.

In spite of the fact that I attended a high school
with a mascot and name of “The Harvesters,” I seldom get to be in such a role.
Those who write Christian fiction are in the business of planting seeds,
hopefully to as many as possible. Planters who, like Jesus telling parables, use storytelling skills to make
subtle or perhaps not so subtle points that lead someone to begin to question
and hopefully to seek answers. Then the farmers and the harvesters take over.

If we are writing under a calling, God has an
audience in mind for the work we are producing. Hopefully, He wants us to reach
a huge number of people. We would all like the maximum number of people to read
our writing. With my book Mysterious
Ways, God obviously knew where He wanted it to go and He saw to it that it
went there. As I said, I have no idea how that was accomplished. It wasn’t a
large group, but it was where He intended it to go.

We all have to ask ourselves that question: What if
the market God has in mind isn’t a large number, what if it is a smaller group?

What if it is only
one?

What if that one is
us?

Are we still willing to write in obedience if God
has a very small audience in mind? I made the commitment long ago to do that.
It’s something each of us needs to decide for ourselves.

We have to go through an exercise where we can
really come to terms with what we deem to be success for our writing. Do we need
the big sales to feel we have achieved success? Do we have to reach a certain
group of people to feel that? For a secular writer, if they don’t sell
thousands of copies, they aren’t considered a success. How many does a
Christian writer have to reach to feel successful?

If I only sold one book and it led to a person
finding salvation, it would be enough although I know all of us certainly want to reach out to
more.

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

The contest organizers didn’t include this criteria to derail entries. In every
fiction contest I’ve judged, I’ve been asked to weigh in on the characters. Yet
as I reflect on the eleven novels I just evaluated, this category proved
especially daunting:

Characterization:

● Did you find
the characters interesting?

● Were they
skillfully developed and multi-dimensional?

● Were they
distinct or could any character have said another's words or complete their
actions?

● Did you
empathize with the hero/heroine and maybe even the villain?

● Could you tell
what motivated them?

● Were the
motivations believable, even for this genre?

I was judging adventure novels, which put much of their
stock in the plot. But plot is just one reason I’ve read so many stories
featuring Dirk Pitt, Cotton Malone, Philip Mercer, and Gray Pierce. As these characters
face world-threatening challenges, I’ve come to know them—especially their
quirks.

Pitt doesn’t just save the world, he collects antique cars. For his day job, Malone
runs a rare bookstore. Mercer remodeled his Alexandria, Virginia,
town house—and relaxes by polishing old railroad ties. When not on a secret
mission, Pierce struggles in his dealings with his father, in the early stages
of Alzheimer’s. These characters have lives outside the plot. They have unusual
interests. Much like real people.

I think of one friend, who keeps a world-class book
collection. Or another, who builds beehives. Or another, who displays a fanatic
devotion to the Chicago Bears – and the Detroit Redwings. Or another, whose
hair, makeup, and clothing are always perfect.

Each threatens the norm in some aspect of their personality and interests.
That’s one measure of what sets them apart—that makes them interesting.

Sadly, most of the contest entrants hadn’t gotten that
message. They filled their pages with stock characters (with the obligatory
weird names): the usual straight-arrow good guys and twisted bad guys.

If these characters had any quirks, they didn’t show up in
the early going—where I was evaluating if the story would be worth my time.

A couple weeks ago I discovered Philip R. Craig’s series of Martha’s Vineyard mysteries—and got to know J.W. Jackson.
Unlike Jackson,
I’m not an ex-cop, don’t know the best tide conditions for catching bluefish,
and have never made paté with fish I’ve smoked. But I sure like spending 250
pages with him.

Or consider my recent friend Bernie Little from Phoenix. Unlike him, I’ve
never seen the attraction of driving fast in early Porsche convertibles,
especially while listening to trumpet player Roy Eldridge. But Bernie does, and
as long as I’m going to help him catch the perps, I’ll respect the quirks that
make him Bernie.

Just like the people who read your novels will show at least
a polite interest—or even a secret fascination—with your main character’s
distinctive clothing, diet, makeup, hobbies, music, pets, phobias, allergies,
sleep habits—something!

Monday, August 24, 2015

Four
years ago I tentatively sent my resume to Joyce Hart without a clue what to
expect if she said “Yes!” She did. Now what?

I was
an agent, or on my way to becoming one. What did I have to offer Hartline? I’d
been a reviewer for romance sites for years. I was a final proofreader, first
for Wild Rose Press, and then for White Rose Press, now Pelican Book Group. I’d
been an assistant to my own agent Terry Burns for a couple years, and I
belonged to numerous critique groups. Why crit groups? Because I am also a writer.

Still,
how would the rest of them accept me? Many had been editors at large publishing
houses, editors in their own rights, booksellers for decades. What could I
offer this awesome team of agents?

I’m a
firm believer that those who’ve made the mistakes: alcoholism, drug addiction,
and the like, and who have come out of the lifestyle are the best to minister
to those struggling. Could I offer authors anything? I’d certainly made all of
the mistakes. Wrote everything wrong for eighteen years, sent things out all
wrong for years, and though I’d attended dozens of conferences through the
years, I didn’t think there was anything I could really learn.

There! I said it. I didn’t think there
was anything more to learn. So I was stagnant, foolish, and going no place
really fast. Like the proverbial snowball downhill, I was gaining momentum and
freezing like a Popsicle in Alaska.

After
mulling that over for a couple days, I realized I had plenty to offer after
all. I had done it ALL WRONG! And
who better to teach and work with folks anxious to do it all right.

How
had I finally managed to get an agent, get my first novella published? My first
book? My second book? My multi-book deal? Could I help steer other fledgling
authors in the right direction?

Well,
team Hartline was awesome. They held my hand, walked me through many things,
and supported me at every turn on the path. They contacted me to see if I’d
like help even before my asking. They were and are true brothers and sisters,
not only in Christ, but in the industry.

They
sent me clients! YES, as I got started, they sent me clients. And I learned
they weren’t pity submissions, the agents at Hartline do this often for each
other.

“Here,
know you love a great romance, and I think this one would be better served by a
female agent.”

“Linda,
I’ve worked with this client before, but I’m having trouble getting her to
understand the pure romance idea. Would you like to take a stab at it?”

“Linda,
I’m overwhelmed with subs this week, would you like to take a look at a few?”

And to
think I’d be worried whether or not I’d fit in.

A
couple years later, I was able to do the same for my teammates.

HARTLINE
IS A TEAM. These are amazing agents there to do a primo job at placing their
clients. They are also there to support one another, lift each other up in
prayer when needed, and to forge forward with the newest ideas and
possibilities. They aren’t afraid of controversial works that have “brilliant”
stamped all over them.

Yessir.
We are a team. And I’m proud to be part of the team that has represented some
of the best award-winning authors in the business today.

MEET THE HARTLINE AGENTS

Joyce Hart, Owner and principal agent

Joyce Hart, owner and principal agent of Hartline Literary Agency has been a literary agent for more than a decade. She was formerly the vice president of marketing of an inspirational publishing company and as the president of Hartline Marketing has nearly thirty-two years of successful experience marketing and promoting books. Joyce has been a pioneer in selling high-quality fiction to the inspirational market and has built an excellent rapport with leading inspirational publishers. A member of ACFW, and the National Association of Professional Women, Joyce is a graduate of Open Bible College, Des Moines, IA now merged with Eugene Bible College in Eugene, Oregon. Joyce is based at Hartline Literary's Pittsburgh headquarters.

Diana Flegal, Agent

Diana currently lives in Asheville NC. A Bible College major in Missions and Anthropology, Diana has been a medical missionary to Haiti, a women's speaker and bible study leader. One of her life's highlights has been teaching apologetics to high school students as preparatory for college. Avid reader and intuitive editor, Diana's represents nonfiction and well written fiction. She has a passion for getting great writers published.

Jim Hart, Agent

Jim Hart is looking for authors who can write unique and engaging fictional suspense, romance, women’s fiction, historical fiction and some sci-fi. Jim is also interested in non-fiction regarding church growth, Christian living, and self-help. Keep in mind that non-fiction topics require a certain level of credentials, experience and expertise. The author will need an appropriate platform to present a non-fiction proposal.

Currently Jim is not looking at children’s, young adult or Biblical fiction proposals.

He holds a degree in Production Journalism and worked for twenty years in direct mail advertising before taking a job with an urban social services agency, where he worked for twelve years. All during his professional career, Jim has served with the local church doing youth ministry and music/worship ministry. He is a credentialed minister with the Assemblies of God, and serves part-time as Worship Pastor in his local church in Southwestern Pennsylvania.

Linda Glaz, Agent

Linda is an experienced editor, reviewer and writer, and for a couple of years was a final reader for Wild Rose Press, then for White Rose Publishing and she worked as an editorial assistant for Hartline Agent Terry Burns. She has judged for numerous contests including the Genesis for the American Christian Fiction Writers, as well as the Emily Award for the West Houston Chapter of the Romance Writers of America. She has been on the faculty for Faithwriters.com annual conference, Maranatha, and is slated for numerous others in 2013. Linda understands writers because she's a writer herself with 4 books releasing in 2013.linda@hartlineliterary.comhttp://lindaglaz.blogspot.com/

Andy Scheer, Agent

Andy has a wealth of experience as a publishing professional with over 18 years as the managing editor of Moody Magazine, 8 years as the managing editor for the Christian Writer’s Guild, and as a free-lance writer and editor. He is a frequent instructor at writing conferences around the country. A journalism graduate from Colorado State University, he also attended Denver Seminary. Andy is a consummate professional and will be a great addition to the Hartline team.